Sudan police teargas protesters in Khartoum - witnesses

KHARTOUM, June 12 (Reuters) - Police in Sudan fired tear gas
and wielded batons on Friday to break up a protest in Khartoum
against government land policies, three witnesses said.

About 500 demonstrators closed two main streets in the
eastern al-Jarif district. The protesters, who say they have a
right to land that the government has allocated to investors,
threw stones at police and burned tyres.

Government critics say there is a crackdown on dissent. Most
of the opposition boycotted an April election which President
Omar Hassan al-Bashir won, thereby extending his quarter-century
rule.

"Men, women and young people from al-Jarif went out today in
a peaceful protest," Othman, a resident of al-Jarif, told
Reuters. "We are demanding our land and our rights that the
government has taken away from us. The government responded with
violence: protesters were hit and tear gas was fired," he said.

Mohamed Saleh said he had seen the two main roads of
al-Jarif blocked and fire from burning tyres. "There were men
and women in the protest and the police were surrounding the
demonstrators," Saleh told Reuters.

District government officials and police were not
immediately available for comment.

In February police broke up a rally in Khartoum prompted by
the death of a woman who had earlier demonstrated against
government land policies, witnesses said.

President Bashir took a more conciliatory tone after his
re-election, appealing for national unity as he grapples with
rebellions and dwindling oil revenues.
(Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz; Writing by Yara Bayoumy;
Editing by Ruth Pitchford)